First published in the Kyle Chronicle, Winter 2020/2021 edition Farmers who use regenerative agriculture techniques accept that wildlife will share some of our harvest with us The ewes helping us clear overgrown willow at the edge of the woods. © The Hirsel UK farming has been in the news a lot lately. The combination ofContinueContinue reading “Regenerative Farming”
Author Archives: Donna Gillies
Partners
We talk a lot about how our sheep are partners in the farm’s regeneration. This is what we’re talking about: when the sheep first arrived, this copse was impenetrable. They started pushing in through it, and bedding down at the edges at night. We thought, at first, that we should get in there and clearContinueContinue reading “Partners”
The wheel turns…
…and five years have passed. We’ve been working this farm together five years this month. Although Donald and his family moved here when he was 11, he never saw himself as choosing a farming life, and it wasn’t until his mum needing someone to help care for her coincided with a transition in his ownContinueContinue reading “The wheel turns…”
Progress looks like this
So, this came today. Our ‘authority to start work’. Basically, the final step in our approval for the Agri-Enviroment Grant we submitted last year. And it changes so much for the farm – we are so excited! It’s not just about the money either, it’s what that money will do, and what our success inContinueContinue reading “Progress looks like this”
Happy 2019!
So, here we are, at the start of a new calendar year, and for the Hirsel, a new year too. Different farms will count the year from different starting points, but for us, it begins now, as we start planning for the next life-cycle to begin needing our care. Seeds need ordering, delayed indoor tasksContinueContinue reading “Happy 2019!”
The Tatties (just in time for the) Holidays
The tatties are here! The Hirsel’s first vegetable crop available for sale, these Cara’s are great all around tatties, and are available in sizes from small to ginormous. They were grown without pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizers…but we’ve skipped the ‘certified organic’ paperwork, saving us the extra hassle, and saving you money: you get themContinueContinue reading “The Tatties (just in time for the) Holidays”
The other side of the coin
It’s amazing how time flies on a farm – it’s been nearly 7 months since Donald wrote ‘The Yorlin’s Sang’. I laugh – a little wryly – when I read that he was looking forward to the snow melting …we were to be hit by the ‘beast from the east’ the following month, and buriedContinueContinue reading “The other side of the coin”
The Yorlin’s Sang
One of the wonders of the Hirsel is the growing population of birds that are attending upon us through all the seasons. Through the decades, Mum had made a habit of planting trees and bushes, here and there, to encourage our feathered neighbours and visitors. It was a part of her life that entertained herContinueContinue reading “The Yorlin’s Sang”
What We did this summer.
I can honestly say that I haven’t worked this hard since I left New York for a new life in the Netherlands. Oh, I’ve worked hard since then, nobody who knew/worked with me during my time in Amsterdam would say otherwise. But my life in NYC meant regular 72-hour work weeks, with 4am ‘dinners’ afterContinueContinue reading “What We did this summer.”
Going with the flow
We had the Paul the vet out yesterday, to help us trim Hookie’s horn. Hookie, our Hebridean ewe named for the horn that curves down and into her cheek is one of our starter ‘muggles’, the name we’ve given to our non-pedigree sheep. She is one of those who took a little longer to trustContinueContinue reading “Going with the flow”
The Hirsel 